I thought I’d share a full-length post on our new dining room gallery wall so I could give you all the specifics of how I created it for those who are interested 🙂 As I mentioned on the video of the process I shared, I had to order all the pieces separately to achieve the look I wanted.
I have been wanting off-centered matted prints since our last home, after being inspired by this old Studio McGee design I saw in Arch Digest & this stairwell by Alaina Kaz, but put it on hold when we decided to sell. When I realized that they were something I would repurpose in our new build anyway, I figured I may as well do them now since we’re inside more than ever lol. The problem was, the company I sourced them from where I could get exactly what I wanted as a single product, only ships to the contingent US (story of my life). If you want to recreate these yourself and live in the states, check out Framed & Matted.
So back to sucky Canadian options lol.. I ended up sourcing the frames here. They are the architect style in 20×30 in black. Maybe sliiiightly too big for this space (or one too many), but I wanted to ensure they would work with significantly taller ceilings in the new build + I wanted an even number to give myself more layout options (ie. if I decide to stack them eventually). I’m really happy with the quality for the price, given they’re not much more than IKEA, and I would honestly off myself if I had to deal with another ribba frame (why are they always a few cms off from every other normal size?! Annoying). Also, these come with a protective film on both sides of the plexi, so easy to assemble without getting fingerprints everywhere.
For the mats, I got them here. Would 1000% use this site again bc I love how easy it is to customize. I chose the same size as the frame I got and they fit in PERFECTLY. This was a key part of the dining room gallery wall bc it allowed me to do the off-centered look I wanted. I also wanted square prints, so again, this was perfect.
PRO TIP: make sure that you make the cut-out on your mat just slightly smaller than the size you get for your prints. My cut-outs are .25 of an inch smaller on all sides.
Lastly, I printed my photos here. You can get them done anywhere, and especially if you’re going with a standard photo size, this should be the easiest part of the process lol. I liked though that I could just get them shipped to me verus going into a Costco or WalMart right now, for example.
I am so thrilled with how the dining room gallery wall turned out + it really finishes the space. Not to mention, I finally have prints from our wedding, maternity shoot and Isla’s first birthday lol. Do you love it?? If I missed something, leave any questions below + I’ll get back to you! x
Hi! Looks so lovely! So you got 20 x 30 mats, but what size photo did you get? And, how did you find the off centre option? Is there a specific name for that? Thanks!
Author
Hi! Thank you! My photos are 12×12, and for the mats you can literally create any cut out size/placement you want on the site I linked!
This looks amazing! What is your matting size? I love the square 12×12 picture size, so I wanted to recreate this off centered look!
Author
Hi Sarah!
My frames are 20×30 with the 12×12 photo.. I made the cutouts about .25 of an inch less than the photo on all sides. You can move your mat placement any way you’d like through the website I used/linked 🙂
Thanks for all this additional info! for the 20×30 picture frame, what size matting did you purchase to fit in the frame, with the correct 11.75 x 11.75 cutout?
Author
Hi! I chose the exact size mat as my frame size and it fit in perfectly!